Top 3 Reasons To Avoid Botox

A Miracle Solution For All Your Skin Aging Problems?

Anti-wrinkle injections may seem like the quick-fix answer to the problems of aging skin however new studies suggest that Botox side effects could be more of a problem than previously thought and may even accelerate the aging process.

Many people want to look the best they possibly can for their age and it’s understandable that opting for the cosmetic surgery route, if you can afford to, is for some the obvious choice to make.

When Botulinum Toxin, or Botox as it is widely known, arrived on the cosmetic surgery scene in the early 1990s it seemed like the miracle solution to the problem of skin wrinkles. However over time the side effects of Botox are becoming more and more intriguing and apparent.

The side effects of Botox fall into one of two categories, these are:

Initial side effects that appear directly after the treatment.

Cumulative side effects that appear as Botox is used over a period of years.

Altering the skin on your face with cosmetic procedures is a game of Russian Roulette – you just do not know what you could end up with. And you may be unfortunate to wind up with a far worse face than one that has a few expression and laughter lines.

The following highlights the top 3 reasons to avoid Botox injections.

1) Botox Side Effects

The Botox website lists a number of unpleasant side effects, some of which can be life threatening. These include problems with swallowing, speaking and breathing.

Other Botox dangers include what the website describes as ‘the spread of toxin effects’. This refers to how Botox injections could affect areas of the body further away from the site of your anti-wrinkle injections.

Initial side effects that can occur immediately or 24-48 hours after having Botox injections include:

Headaches

Neck pain

Dry mouth or eyes

Swelling at the site of injection

Drooping of the eyelid or mouth

Muscle weakness or loss of strength affecting the whole body

Blurred or double vision

Changes to voice including hoarseness or loss of voice

Problems speaking and saying words clearly

Breathing and swallowing difficulties

Loss of bladder control

Of course many people who have Botox injections do not experience these problems or may only experience some slight discomfort after the procedure however the simple fact remains that we do not know enough about the side effects of Botox in the long term.

2) Botox May Affect Your Ability To Communicate Effectively

Two new reports about Botox side effects have contained further interesting information. Psychology professor David Neal from the University of Southern California recently published a report in the journal Social Psychology and Personality Science that found Botox could affect the ability to understand the emotions of other people.

The research showed that Botox users became less able to read other people’s emotions because they cannot mimic other people’s facial expressions. This ‘mimicking’ of facial expressions is important because it forms a part of how we decode what other people are feeling.

The so-called signs of aging like crow’s feet and a furrowed brow are in fact an important part of how we communicate and understand each other.

For example crow’s feet become more pronounced when we smile genuinely or if we want to express disgust. When our brow wrinkles it can indicate that we are worried or afraid. Human communication is a very subtle thing and having an entirely blank, emotionless face could hinder our rapport with other people.

The results of this study reflect those made in another study conducted at Columbia University in 2010. Published in the journal Emotion psychologist Joshua Davis found that Botox could decrease a person’s ability to even feel their own emotions, suggesting that facial expression is a vital part of what is considered to be our emotional experience.

3) Botox Could Speed Up The Aging Process

Another recent study published in the United Kingdom by Dr Darren McKeown found that using Botox at too early an age could actually speed up the aging process.

Botox advocates have long been reassured with the notion that the treatment used over time can act as a preventative to wrinkles. This has resulted in increasingly younger people opting for Botox injections as a way to ward off the dreaded wrinkles.

Many experts view this as ‘madness’ because young people generally don’t have wrinkles; they have facial expressions that produce lines when they interact. When their faces are still they don’t have permanent wrinkles.

However McKeown’s research suggests that there is no evidence to suggest that Botox will act as a preventative measure against skin aging.

It also finds that using Botox over a long period of time can cause muscles to waste away and that this could eventually lead to a more drooping and aged look, especially around the eyes.

Certainly the celebrity gossip columns have cottoned on to this and we are now seeing cruel stories in the press pointing out certain celebrities who appear to have overdone the Botox over the years and who are now paying for it with an oddly aged appearance.

These celebrities don’t necessarily look younger – they just look like 40 to 50 years olds who have obviously had ‘work’ done.

The Natural Way To Look Younger

So with all this in mind it appears that the side effects of Botox may be more sinister than initially thought. The miracle solution may not be such a miracle after all and people are now waking up to this fact.

With these three simple tools under your belt you can look the best you can for your age whilst also maintaining facial expressions, your ability to communicate effectively with others and still look like you!

More and more people are shunning costly cosmetic procedures for natural methods that help to improve the texture and tone of the facial skin.